A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a video microscope system and lighting device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a video microscope system coupled to a video machine, such as a video presenter, including an internal lighting device that is mounted either in the video machine or to the video microscope system. The internal lighting device is optically connected to the video microscope system.
B. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, a video presenter using a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) converts an optical image into an electric signal and outputs the electric signal. The outputted signal is transmitted to an image display device, such as a monitor or a television screen, and reproduced into a video image.
Recently, the use of a video presenter, which reads an optical image of an object placed on a stage and transmits an electrical signal of the optical image to an image display device, such as a television screen, is increasing. The video presenter is mainly used to enhance a presentation by effectively reproducing images such as image data from a three-dimensional object or a color picture album.
The video presenter picks up the image of an object placed on the stage, converts the picked up image into an electrical signal, and transmits the corresponding electrical signal to an image display device. The image display device reproduces the pickup image. In addition, the video presenter enables a user to observe even a minute portion of the object at the image display device when it is coupled with a video microscope system.
That is to say, after an image pickup device of the video presenter picks up the image of the object placed on a stage of a video microscope system, it is possible for the user to observe the object by transmitting the corresponding electrical signal to an image display device and reproducing the image signal as the video image on the image display device.
Hereinafter, the operation of the conventional video microscope system will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawing.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the conventional video microscope system.
Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional video microscope system includes a microscope lens unit 101 having a lens barrel 102, and a plurality of lenses 102a inserted into lens barrel 102, an objective part 107 on which an object 113 is placed, and an external lighting device 105 for supplying light having the required ambient brightness around object 113. External lighting device 105 includes a light box 109 and an optical fiber 111 for transmitting the light emitted from light box 109 to object 113.
To image the object formed through the above-mentioned video microscope system at the video presenter (not shown except for an image pickup part 103, see below), light, emitted from external lighting device 105, is transmitted through optical fiber 111 and projected to object 113, which is placed on objective part 107. Microscope lens unit 101 forms the image of object 113 according to the ambient brightness of the light surrounding object 113.
The image of object 113 formed by microscope lens unit 101 is inputted into an image pickup part 103 in the video presenter (not shown except for image pickup part 103) and converted into an electric signal. The electrical signal is transmitted to an image display device, such as a monitor (not shown), to reproduce the original image.
At this time, the display of object 113 may be observed as an enlarged image by varying the magnification of the lenses of microscope lens unit 101. However, the conventional video microscope system has the disadvantages in that a projecting angle of the light is individually controlled whenever the user observes the object using the conventional video microscope system because an additional external light source is needed to supply the light having the brightness required for the observation of the object. Additionally, it is not convenient to carry the conventional video microscope system because it requires the additional external light source.